Sri Lanka's North closer to political solution, says Wickremesinghe

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Monday assured the minority Tamil community in the North that they would be granted a political solution within the next two years.

"We are closer to achieving a political solution. We will provide a solution during the next two years. That will lead to a future where all Sri Lankans can live with pride," he said while speaking at an event in Jaffna.

The prime minister said that his government was not able to achieve a solution to the Tamil minority question during the past four years as his government lacked parliamentary majority it needed to complete the process.

"No one had the majority, so we struggled. But we tried hard," he said.

"My party and I are committed to reconciliation and a political solution," he stressed. "We are agreeable to give the powers which are acceptable to all communities."